LAS VEGAS—For the 13th year in a row, Lyneir Richardson, executive director of Center for Urban Entrepreneurship and Economic Development at Rutgers University, will be attending the upcoming ICSC RECon conference here in Las Vegas. He is looking forward to visiting Las Vegas, reconnecting with old colleagues and friends, and meeting new players in the industry at the many cocktail receptions that will be taking place throughout the four day event.

Mayors, governors, economic development officials and minority entrepreneurs should be excited about the possibilities of President-elect Trump's "New Deal for Black America." While the granular specifics of Trump's plan have yet to be formulated, here are four ways that it can deliver results for Americans, a win for Trump, and a return for investors:

In a campaign speech in Charlotte, N.C., Donald Trump laid out a “new deal for black America” that he claimed would bring prosperity to inner cities. While the pitch probably didn’t win him very many minority supporters, Trump’s recognition that urban investment can yield “yuuuge” results was spot on.

A new retail store or restaurant can bolster a neighborhood in a surprisingly short time, cascading benefits on the residents ranging from access to healthy food and convenient services to increased property values and safer streets. Early examples are found on the North Side of the city. Take the Lakeview neighborhood near the Ashland-Belmont-Lincoln intersection, […]

For over two years, I have been consulting with Robert Weissbourd, a Brookings Fellow and noted economic development thought leader, to design a program that would catalyze strategic retail development in urban neighborhoods. I am very happy to report that two prestigious foundations (the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation and the Chicago Community […]